This invention relates to a joint and method for producing a joint between two components and more particularly to a joint and method that uses micrograins and a fast curing adhesive to provide a fast alignment and joining of two components in precise relationship with one another.
It is known that stable joints can be formed by cementing two or more components in place. However, because the typical curing time for most cements is relatively long (i.e., 5 minutes to several hours or several days), the expensive fixturing equipment holding these components in precise alignment is tied up for a long time, making the equipment unavailable for producing more jointed parts and increasing queue time and assembly. Furthermore, during the long curing time the two component may be inadvertently moved out of alignment and then set in place in that position.
Some methods of joining two or more components utilize a mixture of solid particles and a curable cementing compound to form such joints. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,967 describes a method for connecting a plurality of bars in a metal casting. This method includes the steps of pouring a granulated solid with grain size of 5 mm to 100 mm to into a metal casing having a centrally located aperture and a plurality of filling apertures, prestressing the solid by driving a mandrill through the filling apertures and injecting a hardening fluid such as a cement based grounding mortar through the central aperture. According to the summary of invention, prestressing the granulated solid results in a very stable joint. However, this step requires extra time during the joint assembly. Furthermore, making a casting with a special central aperture for accepting the hardening fluid and having to cover the central aperture after the hardening fluid is injected into the casing results in an expensive joint. Finally, this patent does not disclose how to achieve a precise alignment of the components relative to one another.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,770 describes a method for anchoring cables inside a sleeve. This method includes the steps of partially filling the sleeve containing the cables with the curable liquid made of epoxy resin and mineral powder, adding the aggregate particles and then, allowing the liquid mixture to cure to a solid mass. However, the epoxy resin/powder mixture takes relatively long time to cure.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for accurately positioning two component with respect to one another and then rapidly joining them together while preserving this alignment, forming a solid joint.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a stable joint comprised of two precisely aligned components. According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of forming a joint comprises the steps of: (a) at least filling a container with granular particles, the granular particles having a size of 0.25 mm to 1 mm; (b) inserting a component part into the container; (c) at least partially filling the container containing this component part and the granular particles with a flowable, curable liquid, this liquid having curing time of less than 90 seconds. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the curable liquid has a gap fill of less than 0.25 mm.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a method of forming a joint by connecting at least one component part to a housing having a fill cavity, comprising the steps of: (i) introducing granular solid material having a grain size from 0.25 mm to 1 mm into the fill cavity; (ii) placing at least a portion of the component part into the fill cavity; (iii) applying a hardening fluid into the fill cavity over the granular solid material, wherein the hardening fluid has a gap fill of less than 0.25 mm.
According to one embodiment of the invention, a method of forming a joint by connecting at least one component part to a housing having a fill cavity comprises the steps of: (i) introducing granular solid material having a grain size from 0.25 mm to 1 mm into said fill cavity; (ii) placing at least a portion of the component part into the fill cavity; (iii) aligning the component part with respect to the housing by moving the component part inside the cavity until a desired orientation is achieved; and (iii) applying a hardening fluid into the fill cavity, wherein the hardening fluid has a gap fill of less than 0.25 mm, to lock said component in said desired orientation.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a rigid joint comprises a plurality of components including: (i) a first component having an inner wall defining a fill cavity; (ii) a second component at least partially situated in the fill cavity of the first component; and (iii) a plurality of micrograms located between the inner wall and at least a part of the first component, the micrograms having a size of less than 1 mm. At least a portion of the micrograms is coated with a polymerizing liquid, such that the coated micrograms and the second component are fixably secured in place.